How fitting: this is the last Thursday on which I’ll be 42. Today’s trivia:

Today is the 236th birthday of the United States Marine Corps. Happy birthday and Semper Fidelis!

Today is the 42nd anniversary of the first broadcast episode of Sesame Street. I thought about making a rude Elmo joke but in honor of their anniversary, I will merely say that I’m very much looking forward to watching Being Elmo.

Today is also the 36th anniversary of the sinking of the SS Edmund Fitzgerald. To celebrate, I will refrain from listening to any Gordon Lightfoot today.

I only have this to say about Joe Paterno: what a shame that his career ended this way, and what a shame that the victims suffered unnecessarily because of the silence– and collusion– of those who knew but didn’t act.